Lightning-arrester.



Q. A. BRACKETT.

LIGHTNING ARRESTER.

APPLICATION FILED IuNE I6. I9I6.

Batented Mar.

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QUINcY A. BRACKETT, or PITTSBURGEQENNSYLVANIA, AssIGNon To wEsTINcHoUsn ELECTRIC AND MANUFACTUMNG c'oMPANiL A CORPORATION or PENNSYLVANIA.

LIGHTNING-ARRESTER.

Speclication taf-Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 26, 1918.

Application filed June ic, 1916. l seran No. 103,598.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, QINCY. A. BRAcKn'r'r, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Pittsburgh, in the'county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Lightning- Arresters, of which the following is a speciication'.

My invention relates to protective devices and particularly to lightning arresters that are inclosed in casings to adapt them for outdoor Service and, at the same'time, to protect or shield the active elements from unauthorized and improper interference when in a charged condition. i

The lightning arrester of the present invention is adapted to be installed out-ofdoors and, usually, on the trolley poles of electrical distributing systems that the lightning arresters are designed to protect from lightning disturbances and the like. On a power-distributing system, lightning arresters are frequently placed at out-of-theway and unguarded places where they are very likely to be tampered with by those not familiar with their inherent characteristics. Moreover, lightning arresters of this character are not subject to frequent inspections and, consequently, must be of rigid construction to insure that the distributing system shall be continuously protected by them under the most severe conditions.

An object of my present invention is to provide a lightning arrester of the aboveindicated character that shall be simple in structure, economical in manufacture, and reliable in operation, and be protected or shielded against inadvertent or intentional interference by ,unauthorized persons. Moreover, my lightning arrester is so designed that the accessible parts thereof are thoroughly insulated from one another and the active elements are adequately protected against all weather conditions.

For a better understanding of the nature and scope of my invention, reference may be had to the following description and the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 is a front view of a lightning arrester embodying a form of my invention, and Fig. 2 is a view, partially in elevation and partially in section, of the device shown in Fig. 1.

Referringto the drawings, the protective device comprises a series of superposed and spaced knurled cylinders 1 made of nonarcing metal and mounted. on the upper portion of a porcelain base 2. One of the knurled cylinders, here shown as the lower cylinder 3, is connected, by means of a copper 1strip f1, to a spring clip or terminal 5 which is also mounted upon the porcelain base 2. A second spring clip 6, in alinement with the clip 5, is positioned at the lower portion of the porcelain base. A resistance rod 7 of any suitable material of high speciic resistance is supported by the clips 5 and 6 and, consequently, is directly connected -in series circuit with spark gaps 8 that are formed between the adjacent knurled cylinders 1. rIhe clip 6 is also provided with a resilient or spring contact member 9 which is so disposed as to normally exert an appreciable pressure upon a contact member 10 which is placed on the outer face of a porcelain projection 11 integrally formed on a porcelain bushing 12. A second resilient contact member 13 extends laterally from the upper arcing cylinder 1, as shown in Ifig. 1, to eXert an outward pressure on a contact member 14 which is positioned on the outer face of a porcelain projection 15, the latter being an integral part of a porcelain bushing 16.

rI`he porcelain base 2 is preferably of rectangular form and is seated in the cover 17 of the inclosing casing. The cover 17 has twospaced transverse Jchannels 18 formed therein. Similar and correspondingly placed channels 18a are formed in the outer face of the porcelain base 2 to register with the aforementioned channels 18 of the cover. In the coperating grooves or channels 18 and 18a are clamped wedges 19 of any suitable compressiblc material. In this manner, the porcelain base 2 is retained in a fixed position within the casing.

By referring to Fig. 1, it will be noted that the upper portion of the casingis enlarged, an overhanging wall portion 20 thereof merging with the central wall-portion of` the casing by means of an inwardly slanted wall-portion 21. The porcelain bushing 16 projects through the wall-portion 21 substantially as shown. Since the assembled arrester .is to be suspended by means of the upwardly projecting portion 22 formed integrally with the casing, it will be apparent that the bushing 16, through which a lead 23 projects, will be protected from rain by the shielding afforded by the wall-portions 20 and 21.

The lead 23 is connected directly to the electrical transmission line (not shown) and, consequently, extends vertically upward for an appreciable distance.H A lead 24, which projects through the bushing 12, constitutes the ground connection for the lightning arrester and, consequently, the bushing 12 is disposed at the lower portion of the casing in order to insure that no lightning disturbances or discharges will extend from the lead 23 directly to the lead 24 without passing through the arc-suppressing and energy-dissipating elements contained within the casing. The leads, therefore, are removed from one another adequate distances and their respective bushings are protected from the influences arising from weather conditions, as is apparent by referring to Fig. 1.

In the particular structure shown, the portion 17 of the casing is the cover thereof, and the portion 25 is the box portion to which the cover 17 is attached by means of hinges 26. It will be noted that the bushings 12 and 16 are positioned in the stationary part 25 of the casing and that each of them is provided with a porcelain projecting member which shields or protects the active portions 27 of the leads 23 and 24.

from coming into Contact with anyone handling the arrester, with the exception of the relatively small, but conspicuous, contact surfaces 10 and 14 with which the spring contact members 9 and 13 engage.

lWhen the cover 17 is held closed by means of a latch 28, the spring member 9 engages the contact member 10, thereby completing an electrical connection to ground, and the spring member 13 engages the contact member 14 to complete an electrical connection to the line conductor. In this position, the arrester is actively charged, but the casing that surrounds it is insulated therefrom and,

consequently, is not dangerous to anyone coming into contact therewith. If, for any reason whatever, the latch 28 should become disengaged, the resiliency of the members 9 and 13 could force the cover 17 outwardly and thereby tend to break the circuit connections with the elements of the arrester. When the cover 17 is opened to permit inspection of the arresten-all the circuit connections are broken, and the arrester may be handled with safety by anyone, care, of course, being exercised to avoid the contact members 14 and 10 which are conspicuously located upon the stationary part of the inclosing casing Where there is n0 need of inspection, all important elements of the arrester that are liable to require attention being disposed on the cover.

To further protect the active' elements of the arrester from weather conditions, I provide the cover 17 with a channeled edge 29 in which is seated a fiber washer or gasket 30 that insures a tight joint when the cover is clamped to the box portion 25.

While I have shown and described one embodimentl of my invention, it will be understood that many modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claim.

I claim as my invention A lightning arrester comprising a containing casing therefor which is adapted to be hung in a vertical position and has an outwardly-enlarged portion that merges with the body of the casing by means of a shielded wall-portion, arc-suppressing and energy-consuming elements contained Within the casing, an insulating bushing projecting through said shielded wall portion, and a conductor extending therethrough by means of which said elements may be connected to an exterior circuit..

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 9th day of June, 1916.

QUINCY A. BRACKETT. 

